Howard University - Bison Yearbook (Washington, DC)

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From Home — To Dorm Room To — Moving from the dorm life to an apartment is considered to be a big move. In order to make this move finding a house or an apartment is required. Keeping in mind that a student's budget is very limited due to the fact of educational expenses. Living an independent life is much more complicated than living a life within a dormitory. However, living independently is known as living freely. Many student's curiosity is aroused by the question why is it that so many students live off campus? To answer this question briefly Paula Brooks, a senior from Indianapolis. Indiana stated that since I am the only child I have never been exposed to sharing so much of my space and or privacy. This is obviously the most given reason for living off campus. Another popular reason is a great majority of students are faced with the problem of not receiving housing Receiving housing at Howard is extremely difficult simply because there's not enough housing available. Therefore the lottery system was brought forth to help solve the problem of placing students within housing. Actually. the idea of having a lottery was designed to give all students presently holding a space within any given dormitory a fair chance of getting a room each year. Before the lottery system many students stayed in their same rooms from year to year, while others were forced to lease apartments, transfer or even to return home. In order to participate in the lottery one must keep his or her application of housing up to date yearly If the student presently applying is unfortunate, and doesn’t have a room he or she cannot participate in the lottery. The lottery system is restricted to students having possession of dor-mitqfy rooms. This raises another problem. The students who were never lucky enough to be placed within a room are still trying to be placed within Howard's residence life. For those unfortunate students, they must apply over and over again, and wait until there is space for them. Remembering what it was like to move from Howard's Meridian Hill dormitory Paula Brooks, as a freshman stated that “there’s nothing like experiencing life in a dormitory. Being that I never got the chance to live in the Quad I feel like I missed out on a lot of things. For instance I didn't make a lot of friends because that's where most close friendships begin at the Quad. However. I was placed in an upper classman dorm. I had a great deal of fun. I was within close range of The or er erKe of hoow without the parent can't b« found m dormilofy room but alter maiung the final move student find them in apartment and house The Final Move the heart of the city, I had a great deal of privacy and so on. The only thing I regret is not living in the Quad. All in all, I had fun because it was a new experience. I wouldn't trade that experience of living in a dorm for nothing in the world. ' Paula lives off campus now Previously she roomed with two young ladies According to Paula there's a great deal of privacy, and you learn a lot about yourself. She doesn't like the fact that you have to wait and depend on someone “to come through with their funds for the rent and other bills. There's also the problem of getting use to your roomates ways and habits which can cause a great deal of friction. Paula is presently living by herself She feels that “living in an apartment makes you more mature because you take on big responsibilities, such as paying the rent, shopping. furnishing your place and so on. The nice part about it is that you can do whatever you want. That's very advantageous! The disadvantage of the whole thing is you're isolated. You're seen only by your best friends, where as people you weren’t even close with took the time out to knock on your door and say hi' There’s also the problem of providing your own transportation, and missing out on a lot of events. Living on your own is definitely a big move, but It's well worth it! According to Alfred Sandford. a sopho more majoring in Insurance, “there's nothing worse than being regulated all the time. There's nothing like living on your own be- 26 Studrnt l.ifr

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 cause you have the feeling of being grown Nobody can tell you what to do. I don't mind advice, but I hate to be told what to do constantly. You have your privacy, and a great deal of freedom I've never hod so much fun in my life. I love it to death!” When asked, both Paula and Alfred said they would never move back into the dorms If given a chance, basically because of the small rooms, no privacy, not being able to entertain when you want to. and the fact that you have to share so much, such as the bath rooms. Making that big move is a serious step in life, but It's a step that needs to be taken by all students at one time